


Faking it for the Holidays

by FeelsandFandoms



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bisexual Arthur Pendragon, Bisexual Character, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, M/M, Multi, Mutual Pining, Nice Uther, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-19
Updated: 2015-03-26
Packaged: 2018-03-01 23:12:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2791199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FeelsandFandoms/pseuds/FeelsandFandoms
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a month before Christmas and Arthur had just been dumped. He hates being single during the holidays when he has to visit his family. Merlin comes to rescue by offering to be his 'boyfriend' for the visit. It's a great plan and should work. The only problem is, Arthur actually likes his best friend. Can he keep his true feelings hidden from Merlin while he's pretending to date him?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm actually in a Christmas writing mood this year so I came up with this because who can't enough of pretend dating fics?

 

November 25,2014

“So, you’ve been dumped. I thought you were planning on breaking up with Vivian soon anyway?” Merlin asked.

“I was,” huffed Arthur.

“Then why are you upset about it? Can’t handle someone breaking up with you, Pendragon?” Merlin asked with a smirk.

Arthur sighed as he leaned forward on the table, crossing his arms. “It’s not that. I just didn’t want to be single during Christmas.”

Merlin raised an eyebrow at the blond. “And what’s so bad about being single then? It’s one less present to buy and Vivian had expensive taste.”

“There’s no bad about being single but you don’t know what it’s like to be single at the Pendragon house during Christmas because you’re constantly asked ‘are you dating?’ or then ‘why aren’t you dating?’. I hate going alone.”

Merlin stared at Arthur for a moment before leaning forward. “Let me get this straight. You were going to keep dating Vivian and then break up with her after Christmas so you wouldn’t have to go home alone.” Arthur dropped his gaze and nodded. “That’s terrible. How could you do that to someone?”

“I know, I know, Merlin, don’t rub it in. But I know I’m not the only person in the world who doesn’t like spending the holidays alone.”

“But you’ll be with your family. At least that’s something.”

Arthur looked back up at Merlin. “True but since Morgana just got engaged, I’ll really be interrogated on why I’m single.”

“Oh, poor Arthur Pendragon, whatever will you do?” Arthur kicked him underneath the table. “Ow, what the hell?”

“This will be the last time I ever share my problems with you.”

“Oh come on, Arthur. Don’t be so over dramatic.”

Arthur leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms against his chest. “You try spending a week at my family’s house with all their expectations and judgment. Then we’ll talk.”

Merlin opened his mouth to say something but then closed it when he saw how distressed Arthur looked. “Okay, your family spends the week leading up to Christmas together?”

“Well, the five days leading up to it. The whole family isn’t there the whole time; some come in at different days.”

Merlin nodded. “As long as I can leave on Christmas Eve of day to visit my mum, I’ll go with you.”

Arthur stared at Merlin, blinking a couple of times, trying to figure out if he heard his friend correctly. “Why are you coming with me?”

Merlin rolled his eyes. “You said you don’t like going home alone for Christmas, so I’m going to join you.”

Arthur’s mouth hung open for a moment as tried to process what Merlin was getting out. “But how will you coming along help me if I’m still single?”

“You won’t be single, technically.”

“Wait, are you asking me out?”

Merlin laughed. “No, not exactly. I’m proposing to be your pretend boyfriend. I come with you to your family’s house, spend the five days with you and your family, so you don’t have to go through it alone.” He picked up his coffee cup and finished what was left as he waited for Arthur’s response.

“Why would you do this for me?”

Merlin shrugged. “You’re my best friend and I want to help you out in your hour of need.”

Arthur smiled. “Well thank you, Merlin. I knew I could always count on you.”

“And I expect a good gift out of this. It wouldn’t look too good on you if you cheap out on your boyfriend for Christmas,” Merlin said with a big shit eating grin on his face.

“But we won’t have been dating that long. It might seem overzealous on my part if I got you something too big.”

“While wouldn’t have been ‘dating’ for long,” Merlin said with air quotes, “we’ve been friends for years now. It’s not like we just met. It’ll be fine.”

Arthur drummed his fingers on the table as he thought it over. “You’re serious about doing this? Like you’re screwing with me?”

“I mean it, Arthur. I will spend Christmas with you, pretending to be your boyfriend.”

“My grandmother will ask you all kinds of questions about yourself and us. Are you prepared for that?”

“It can’t be too bad. I’ve put up with you and your sister for six years. I think I can manage.”

They said soon said their goodbyes and parted ways. It didn’t fully hit Arthur what he had agreed to until he returned home. He was so caught up in the moment that he didn’t stop to realize it meant having to spend five days pretending to date someone he actually had feelings for. There would be no pretending needed on his part to like Merlin, but could he hold back enough so that his friend didn’t figure that out? This was not going to be easy.

* * *

 

December 20th

The time had finally come as Arthur and Merlin made their way to the Pendragon Estate on Saturday morning. Arthur drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and kept shooting Merlin side glances as he drove. “We have to make sure no one finds out that this relationship is fake. I’ll never be able to live it down otherwise,” he said.

“Don’t worry, Arthur. I can act romantically toward you and no one will know the difference. I am an actor after all,” Merlin said, looking at the window.

Arthur was a little thrown by how nonchalant he was about how easy it would be for him to pretend. “I know. I’m just nervous.”

“It’ll be fine.” Merlin turned to look at the blond. “Does your family know I’m coming?”

“I mentioned to my father that I was bringing someone so he would have things prepared for an extra person but not who I was bringing.”

“What about Morgana? I’ve been too busy lately to see her.”

“I haven’t had the chance to tell her either.”

Merlin narrowed his eyes. “Didn’t get the chance or didn’t want to tell her?” Arthur’s silence was his answer. “Arthur, don’t you think she’ll find it odd you didn’t tell her we we’re dating? She’ll get suspicious.”

“I thought it would be easier to tell her with everyone else and so that she wouldn’t have the chance to tell the rest of the family first. I figured we could play it off as we were going to make our relationship public now and wanted to tell our families first.”

Merlin looked at Arthur impressed. “That’s actually a good idea. Have you thought of the story we’ll tell them about how started dating when they ask?”

“I thought you already came up with that,” Arthur said as he glanced to Merlin to see that he was staring back him, eyes wide.

“No! I’ve been busy with my play and haven’t had time to come up with it. Why did you assume I would?”

“Because this was your idea!”

The car was silent after that for the rest of the drive. Arthur was panicking. This was a terrible idea and his family would see right through them. Their plan was already falling apart and they hadn’t even reached their destination yet. This was going to be the worst Christmas ever.

As Arthur pulled up the driveway to the house, he saw Morgana’s car was already there. He parked next to hers and turned to Merlin. “Are you ready to do this?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” he answered with a half-smile. “How should we act in front of your family? Overly romantic or minimum PDA?”

Arthur drummed his fingers on the stirring wheel again as he thought it over. “Over romantic will make it seem like we’re trying too hard,” he finally said. “But if we do too little, they won’t believe we’re a couple. We have to find that spot in the middle.”

Merlin nodded. “Yes, but we’ve been dating for what, like a month now? It might not look too odd if we’re all over each other a little too much.”

Arthur was completely fine being touchy feely with Merlin but he was worried the lines between pretend and reality would get blurred if they did too much. He didn’t want to accidently go too far and freak Merlin out. “I guess so. I just don’t want to do too much around my father because I’m not exactly how comfortable he would be seeing it. So around him, follow my lead.”

“I can do that.”

“Shall we go then?” Arthur opened his door but stopped when Merlin spoke.

“Wait, Arthur. Before we go in there, I just wanted to say that everything is going to be okay. There is nothing to worry about and next few days will be over before you know it,” he said, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

“Thanks, Merlin.” He turned away and mentally prepared himself as he exited the car. He couldn’t hide from his family in his car the whole time.

Merlin did the same and opened the back door to start collecting his bags. “It must be nice to have your family in such a position where you can take off nearly a week before Christmas and spend the time together.”

Arthur slung his bag over his shoulder and grabbed the bag of presents. “It wasn’t until I was older that I realized most families didn’t do that as well. But while it can be stressful now, it’s nice to see the family members I don’t see as often anymore.” Arthur heard Merlin mumble something that sounded like “privileged prat” but he pretended not to hear it and continued, “Though, I could do without seeing my uncle Agravaine.”

“Is he your father’s brother or mother’s?” Merlin asked as he closed the door and walked around to Arthur.

“My mother’s. He’s always come on Christmas Eve but none of us, including him, are ever happy about it.” Arthur started walking toward the house, followed by Merlin.

“Why does he come then?”

Arthur thought about it for a moment but answering, “I don’t even know anymore. It’s just tradition I guess.”

They made it to the door and Arthur led the way inside. “Hello?” he called out.

A moment later, they were greeted by Morgana. “Arthur! It’s about time you came in. Did you get lost on your way to the front door? I saw you pull up but didn’t think you’d take forever to get in here.”

“Ha ha, it’s good to see you too, Morgana,” he said as he threw his arm around her for a brief hug.

Merlin waited behind Arthur and saw Morgana turn her attention to him.

“Hello, Merlin. It’s a surprise to see you here,” she said as she pulled away from Arthur.

Merlin opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted buy Gwen running into the entry way.

“Hey, Arthur and … Merlin?” she looked between the three of them confused.

Merlin said hi to his friends and Arthur answered, “He’s here with me.”

Morgana looked from Arthur to Merlin, raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at him as she waited for them to continue explaining.

“Is father around? I would like to explain the least amount of times that I can.”

As if summoned by Arthur’s question, Uther appeared. “Why is everyone still standing by the door?” he asked. “Let’s move into the sitting room instead of standing around.” The four young adults made their way into the sitting room, followed up by Uther. “Arthur, where is your girlfriend? I thought you told me she was coming this week?” Uther asked, not even noticing Merlin in the room.

Arthur sighed. He might as well get this part over as soon as possible and there was no avoiding it now. Morgana and Gwen sat on the love seat together while Uther took his chair, all eyes on Arthur and Merlin as they waited for his answer. “I didn’t say that I was bringing a girlfriend with me for Christmas. Vivian and I broke up a month ago. After that, Merlin and I started dating. That’s why he’s here with me.” For added effect, he slid his arm around Merlin’s waist, pulling him close to his body and smiled.

The room was silent for a minute as Uther looked between his son and Merlin, who just noticed was in his home and Morgana looked at them with a black expression that worried Arthur. Gwen was the first to break the silence. “Well, this unexpected but not a complete surprise. Congratulations on finally getting together!” she said with a smile.

“Thank you, Gwen … wait what? What you do mean it’s not a surprise we’re together?” Arthur asked.

Gwen laughed. “Oh come on, Arthur. Since uni, we’ve all been wondering when you two would finally admit your feelings for each other. Tell ‘em, Morgana.”

“It’s true,” his sister agreed.

Arthur rolled his eyes, causing Merlin to laugh at him. Uther still hadn’t responded. “Is everything okay, father?”

“Of course it is,” Uther replied as he shifted in his chair. “I am just a bit surprised but don’t think it’s because I’m against you dating a man. You know I’m not against that anymore. I just don’t know why you couldn’t have told me when we last spoke on the phone.”

“Same with me. I’m always the first to know when you’re in a new relationship,” added Morgana.

Arthur shifted on his feet and tried to keep himself under control. Thankfully, Merlin came to his rescue by saying, “We both decided to tell you all in person instead of over the phone. I’m waiting to tell my mum when I see her for Christmas. So you three are the first to know about our relationship.” He leaned his head down on Arthur’s shoulder, patting him on the chest.

Arthur couldn’t help but thank, damn he’s good. Uther and Gwen seemed satisfied with the answer but Morgana still kept her face blank as she focused on Arthur. “If you’ll excuse us, we need to put our bags away,” he announced as he started to pull Merlin out of the room before they could be stopped. He reminded himself not to run out of the room.

Once they were safe in Arthur’s old room, Arthur said, “That wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.”

Merlin dropped his bag on the bed. “Yeah, after I saved us. I thought you figured out how you would tell them.”

“That was my fault. I’m glad you thought of that.” Arthur walked over and dropped his bag by the closet.

Merlin put his hands on his hips and looked over at Arthur. “If we’re going to make this look believable, we’ve got to communicate over the next five days. Otherwise, one of us we’ll get caught up on a question and blow the whole thing.”

Arthur nodded and said, “Agreed. My father shouldn’t ask too many personal questions so we’ll be okay with him. My grandmother probably will when she returns but it’ll be standard stuff that grandmothers like to ask. It’s Morgana and Gwen I’m worried about. I think my sister is suspicious of us.”

“I thought the same thing about Morgana. What about the rest of your family?”

Arthur shrugged. “The rest of them will just be here for Christmas Eve and will be more preoccupied with Morgana and Gwen’s engagement to care.”

“That’ll keep them distracted.” Merlin watched Arthur as set the bag of presents out of the way. “Can I ask a personal question?”

Arthur looked up at him before walking toward the bed and sitting down on the edge. “About my father?”

Merlin sat next to him on bed, leaving this some space. “Only if you want to share.”

“I thought so. Go ahead and ask.”

“Is he really okay with you dating men? I remember things didn’t go so well when you came out as bisexual a couple of years ago but you haven’t said much about it.”

“I think so? After Morgana came out and started dating Gwen, he started to open toward us and accepting that we weren’t straight. We haven’t really talked about it much. I honestly didn’t know how he would react when I brought you here as my boyfriend. You’re the first guy I’ve told him that I’ve dated so I was worried he wouldn’t take it well.”

Merlin didn’t know what to say for a moment. He was even more grateful for his accepting mother and not having to go through situations like this. “Well, you survived it and he didn’t throw you out of the house so that’s a good sign.”

“At least in the future when I have a serious relationship with a guy and bring him home, it won’t be such a shock,” Arthur said, trying to lighten the mood.

“Oh, yeah, that’ll be good,” Merlin said weakly. “When does your grandmother return?” he asked to change the subject.

“She’ll be back sometime tomorrow so it’ll just be the five of us tonight.”

They sat in silence for a moment before Merlin jumped up from the bed. “Shall we return back downstairs and be social with your family?” he asked as he offered Arthur his hand. Merlin smiled as Arthur slid his hand into his and helped pull him up. “Now, was it just me or did Uther not recognize me?” he asked as they exited the bedroom.

“No, I’m sure he knows who you are,” Arthur answered though he did not sound confident about it.

“It didn’t seem like it when he finally realized I was here.”

“I’m sure that’s not the case. I’ve talked about you to him before so he must remember you.”

“If you say so.”

 

They reentered the sitting room and found it empty. “Where did everyone go?” Merlin asked.

Arthur heard noise coming from the kitchen. “Follow me.”

Morgana and Gwen were in the kitchen, making tea. “Care for some?” Morgana asked when she saw them enter.

“Thanks, that’ll be good,” Arthur replied. “Where did father go?”

“He said he needed to go into town for about an hour but didn’t say what he was doing.” Morgana handed them each a cup.

“So, it’s just the four of us,” Gwen added, leaning against the counter.

“How’ve you been, Gwen? Since things have been so busy lately, I’ve missed our lunches,” Merlin said.

“Things have been wonderful but definitely busy. Planning a wedding is harder than I ever thought,” she replied.

“Have you set a date?”

Gwen sighed. “We haven’t been able to agree on one yet. Hopefully we can pick something soon so we can move forward on the rest of the planning.”

“Enough about us,” Morgana said with a wave of her hand. “Let’s hear about you two.”

Arthur tensed up with the look she shot him. Merlin noticed and started gently rubbing his hand between Arthur’s shoulder blades to help calm him. It worked and Arthur shot him a smile as a silent thank you.

“How did this happen?” Morgana asked.

“After Vivian and I ended our relationship, I was having coffee with Merlin the next day and realized how much time I’ve wasted by dating other people,” Arthur started.

“Glad to know I was a waste of time,” Gwen threw in.

“I didn’t mean you were one, Gwen.”

Gwen laughed as she shoved his shoulder. “I’m just joking with you.”

“And?” Morgana asked, getting them back on topic.

“And he asked me out. Kinda just blurted it out and took me by surprise but I obviously said yes. It took him long enough to ask me, am I right?” Merlin said to continue their story.

“I’m happy for the both of you. You’ve had your share of bad relationships, Arthur, and you two are great for each other,” Gwen said.

“But Arthur, if you hurt Merlin, I will kill you,” said Morgana.

“What? I thought you would say the opposite of that?” Arthur asked, looking at his sister confused.

“You are my brother so I know how you can be. Treat Merlin well.”

“Thanks, Morgana,” Merlin said, giving her a smile before turning to look at Arthur. “You’re sister just likes me more than you.”

“I see where your loyalties lie.” Arthur crossed his arms across his chest and dramatically looked away from all of them.

“Oh don’t be like that,” Merlin said as he set his cup down. He pulled Arthur close to him and kissed him on the cheek. Merlin wasn’t sure exactly why he did that but it felt right in the moment.

Arthur’s cheeks flushed at the kiss and he slowly turned to look back at Merlin. They hadn’t discussed kissing so he was not expecting that. They stared at each other, unsure of what to do until Morgana spoke up.

“Come on, lovebirds, let’s find something to do. I don’t want to stand in the kitchen all day and watch you two be all cutesy.” She finished her tea and the led the way out of the room with the other three in tow.

They followed her into one of many rooms upstairs where Morgana pulled out a bunch of board and cards games for them to choose from. Cards Against Humanity was picked. (Morgana brought the game to the house last year just in case.) Arthur was distracted the whole time they played. It was ridiculous to be so hung up on a kiss on the cheek, he told himself. But it was from Merlin, and while it was only for show, it was different. His eyes kept darting to Merlin’s lips and wondered what it would be like to actually kiss him. This wasn’t the first time he thought about that though. Arthur needed to figure out a way to get through the next five days without doing something stupid and ruin his whole friendship with Merlin.

 

“Goodnight,” Merlin said before closing the door. He turned around to Arthur. “I am definitely ready to sleep. How about you?”

“About that, there’s only one bed.”

Merlin walked over to his bag. “Yes, I noticed that earlier when we were in here. You point?” He dug through the bag to find his pajamas. When Arthur didn’t answer, he looked at the blond. “I won’t steal the covers if that’s what you’re worried about.” He flashed him an innocent smile.

“You don’t mind sharing the bed then?” Arthur was a little nervous about sharing the bed with him though he knew he shouldn’t be. It wasn’t the first time they had shared a bed but the situation was a little different this time.

“I’m not sleeping on the floor. Plus, I don’t trust Morgana and feel like she would come in one morning before we woke up. It wouldn’t look good if she found you on the floor.”

“Why would I be on the floor? It’s my bed.”

“And I’m your guest. I would offer you my bed if you ever stayed at my house.”

“Well, we’re sharing the bed so it doesn’t matter.”

Merlin smiled. “I’m going to change now,” he said as he walked into the ensuite with his pajamas and toothbrush.

While he was gone, Arthur quickly changed into his red pajama bottoms and a loose fitted shirt. He normally went shirtless but he figured it would be better if he didn’t. Merlin stepped out in black bottoms and a grey long sleeved shirt. They passed without a word as Arthur entered the room to brush his teeth.

“What side of the bed do you want?” Merlin asked when he reentered the room.

“The left is fine,” Arthur said as he walked to turn off the main light before walking to the bed.

Merlin slid into the bed, fluffing the pillow before lying down. “I can’t believe you actually have a four, poster canopy bed. Who do you think you are? Some kind of prince? It’s a bit much my friend,” Merlin said as Arthur slid into the bed.

“It’s not like I picked it out myself but I do like it,” he said with a smile.

“In all seriousness, today wasn’t so bad,” Merlin said as they settled down into the bed.

“It could have been worse. Are you ready to be asked a million questions by my grandmother tomorrow?”

“Anything I should be prepared to answer about us?” he asked, turning on his side to better face Arthur.

Arthur looked over at him. “I don’t think. She’ll probably just want to know your life’s story.”

“Oh boy, hopefully I won’t disappoint,” he said as he lay back down.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be fine. What’s not to like about you?” He saw the look of surprise on Merlin’s face at his words. “Goodnight, Merlin,” he quickly added before he said anything else. He turned to switch off the lamp.

“No goodnight kiss for your boyfriend?” Merlin asked with a smile. Arthur whipped back around and stared at his friend, eyes dropping to his lips and lingered there probably longer than they should have. “Just joking, Arthur. Good night.” Merlin flipped over, facing away from Arthur.

It was too dark for Arthur to know for sure if Merlin was blushing or not but he thought he was. Arthur turned away from Merlin and tried to get comfortable. Way to make it things awkward, he thought. He’ll need to be a little more careful of what he says tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have most of this written and I will have this all finished hopefully by next Tuesday. I'll be updating each chapter over the next few days.
> 
> If you come across any mistakes, please let me know.
> 
> Also, find me on [tumblr](http://buckypendragon.tumblr.com/) for more Merlin related things.


	2. Chapter 2

 

December 21st

Arthur awoke the next morning to find the bed next to him was empty. He raised his head and looked around the room to see it was empty too. "Merlin?"

Merlin poked his head out of the ensuite and gave Arthur a questioning look. His hair was damp and he was in the middle of brushing his teeth. Arthur couldn't help but think how adorable Merlin looked.

"Go back to brushing your teeth. I was just wondering where you were," Arthur said as pushed himself into a sitting position.

Merlin disappeared for a minute before walking back into the bedroom. "I'm glad to see you're finally up. I was going to wake you up once I was finished getting ready.

Arthur slid out of bed and stretched his arms above his head. "Why are you up and dressed already?"

"I always wake up early so I decide to just have a shower and be ready when you finally got up. I'm also hungry so the sooner you get dressed the better."

"You are welcome to go down for breakfast without me. You don't have to wait for me if you're starving," Arthur said he pulled out clothing to wear for the day.

"Id rather wait than take the chance of ending up alone with your father."

"Fair point. Give me no more than fifteen minutes and we'll head down together."

 

Breakfast was uneventful with everyone not awake enough to carry much conversation while they ate. Uther left shortly after breakfast to go to the airport to pick up his mother.

They didn't arrive back at the house until after noon because her flight had been delayed. Both couples gathered in the main sitting room to greet her. Merlin kept himself toward the back to give the Pendragon's their time to greet get first. She was a shorter woman with short white hair, glasses and a kind smile.

Merlin was surprised by the warm greeting she gave him when she finished with the other three before asking who he even was. It made Merlin smile. He barely remembered his own grandparents, all of them died when he was still young, and it was happy to meet her.

"And who might you be?" she asked him.

"I'm Merlin, Arthur's boyfriend. It's a pleasure to meet you," he replied.

She smiled at him and Arthur. "I am Yvonne. It's a pleasure to meet you as well. I'm glad you could spend the holidays with us." She turned back to everyone else and asked, "Is anyone else hungry?"

"Gwen and I have lunch already prepared," said Morgana. "It's ready now."

And with that, the six of them made their way into the dining room. Grandma sat at one of the table with Uther at the other and each couple on one side of the table. Merlin wasn't thrilled to be close to Uther but he didn't want to take time away from Arthur with his grandmother since he didn't see her often. Morgana sat next to her as well. This left Merlin and Gwen to themselves but they didn't mind.

"It's so nice to have the family here this year and soon-to-be family," Grandma said with a smile to Gwen, "and a new face." Her gaze fell on Merlin. "How long have you two been together?"

"About a month now but we've been friends since the first year of university," Arthur answered, placing his hand on top of Merlin's that was on the table, rubbing the back of his hand with his thumb. It was a nice, sweet touch to add that made his grandmother smile.

"Is this the same Merlin you were flatmates with?"

Merlin tried not laugh as Arthur answered yes. He couldn't believe she knew who he was but not Uther who had met him on several occasions.

"What is it that you do, Merlin?" Yvonne asked.

"I'm a stage actor. My last performance wrapped a week ago. I played Ariel in The Tempest," Merlin replied.

"Oh I love Shakespeare. I studied his work when i was younger. You'll have to let me know when your next performance is so I can attend."

A grin spread across Merlin's face. "That would be lovely. I'll make sure Arthur tells you."

"I trust my grandson has been supportive and attends your plays?"

"Yes, he has."

"Of course I have. I've been going to them since uni. Who do you think he comes to when he needs to go over his lines?" Arthur said.

"Though there was that one time you fell asleep during a performance. You even snored," Morgana said with a wicked grin.

All eyes turned to Arthur. Yvonne raised an eyebrow at Arthur that reminded Merlin of his uncle Gaius.

"It's not like I did it on purpose! It was toward the end of a semester and I was exhausted from classes. Least I still showed up for it. That should count for something," Arthur protested. He pointed a finger at Morgana, "And I do not snore."

"Now it all makes sense of why you didn't know what I was talking about afterwards. Glad to know how much you care," Merlin joked.

Arthur looked at him, "Oh don't join in with my sister. You're supposed to be on my side."

"Normally I would be on your side, but you fell asleep during my play. And for the record, you do in fact snore, Arthur," Merlin said with a smug grin. That got a laugh from everyone at the table, including Uther.

The conversation moved on Morgana and Gwen. Merlin was happy to sit back and listen. While they weren't technically his family, though three of his closest friends were present, this was the most family together at once for Merlin. It threw him off a little since his Christmas usually involved his mum and Uncle Gaius. (He wasn't his real uncle but the man had always been a part of Merlin's life so he saw that way.) He wondered what it would be like when the rest of the family arrived later in the week.

 

Uther excused himself after lunch to take care of a work related issue that arose. The two couples and Yvonne made their way back into the sitting room to continue their conversation. Yvonne took Uther's chair and Morgana and Gwen the loveseat. Merlin tried to slip out of the room while the others weren't paying attention to him but he was stopped in the hallway by Arthur.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“I thought I could give you some time to spend with your grandmother, you know, so it’s just family.”

“You don’t see Gwen leaving do you?”

Merlin glanced back in the room at Gwen. “No, but she’s going to be part of the family soon.”

Arthur smiled at Merlin and stuck out his hand to him, wiggling his fingers to get Merlin to take his hand. “You’re here with me so you’re not out of place.” Merlin thought about it for a moment before sliding his hand into Arthur’s. “Plus, I think my grandmother really like you so she’ll want to talk to you some more.”

Merlin didn’t protest as Arthur led him back into the room.

“I thought you boys were running off on us,” Yvonne said.

“We wouldn’t dream of it,” Arthur replied as he sat down on the couch.

Merlin sank onto the couch next to him, making sure they were close. It felt good to finally sit close to Arthur like this on purpose, even if it was only for show. Merlin had to keep reminding himself this was not real. If he did, he could keep himself from giving in too much and keep his feelings for Arthur hidden and not get burned when this wall over with.

“Tell me, Arthur, how did you and Merlin get together?” Yvonne asked.

Arthur slid his arm around Merlin’s shoulder and hoped this would be the last time he had to tell this story. “Well, we’ve always had feelings for one another over the years but we could never admit them. I knew since the day that I met him walking across campus that I liked him, it just took some time to realize I liked him that way.”

Merlin looked at Arthur, a little taken aback. He hadn’t said this before in their getting together story. Where did it come from? Merlin remembered that day but he sure as hell didn’t think Arthur meant it. Especially since Arthur acted like a total arse when they first met.

“After my recent breakup, Merlin was there for me and I realized he was the only person I should have been with this whole time,” continued Arthur.

“When he asked me, I told him it was about time,” Merlin said as if on cue.

“That’s sweet. Sometimes it takes a while to realize these kinds of things. But one way to look at it is, your relationship has a good, solid foundation from being friends for so long.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” said Gwen. “It helped our relationship since it makes things a little less awkward if you already know the person before you start dating.”

“Well, I hope we have a good foundation since we are engaged to marry,” Morgana said.

“Of course we do,” Gwen said as she leaned into Morgana and kissed her on the cheek.

“Now who’s doing the cutesy couple stuff?” Arthur asked.  
Morgana rolled her eyes at Arthur but choose not to give in to his taunts.

“Does anyone care to accompany me on a walk around the grounds?” Yvonne asked. “I need to stretch my legs after that flight.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Morgana said as she rose from her seat, offering a hand to Gwen. “What about you two?”

“Of course we’ll join you,” Merlin said.

“Everyone grab your coats and things and meet by the back door in five minutes,” Yvonne said as she walked out of the room to get hers.

The others did the same and just as they were about to walk at the door, Uther appeared. “Care to join us for a walk, Uther?” Yvonne asked.

“I would if I still wasn’t having to fix this work problem but I do need to speak with Arthur for a moment. It won’t take long.”

“We can wait then,” Morgana offered.

“No, go on ahead. I’ll catch up with you guys,” Arthur said. He gave Merlin an apologetic face before turning and following Uther.

Merlin’s anxiety kicked in as he walked out the door with the three woman. Could Uther have figured out their lie?

 

Once outside, Gwen and Morgana placed themselves on opposite sided of Merlin, interlocking their arms with his as they started to walk.

“It is nice to have you alone without Arthur. You’re our friend too,” Gwen said.

“I know, Gwen. I’m glad for it too. And I am sorry I didn’t tell you two sooner about us dating.”

“I’m still a little mad you didn’t since I was the first to know you liked him but I’m happy you two finally did it.”

“So you’re okay with us dating?” Merlin asked.

Gwen laughed. “Why wouldn’t I be? Yes, Arthur and I dated but that was years ago. I’ve long since moved on.”

“Moved on to the better Pendragon,” Morgana chimed in with a toothy grin.

“I just didn’t know how you would react to the news is all,” Merlin said. “Some people get upset if their friends date their ex and I didn’t want it to cause anything between us.”

Gwen leaned her head on Merlin’s shoulder. “There is nothing to worry about. Who’s been the encouraging you to tell him?”

“I wish we’d known you were coming so we could have brought your gift with us,” said Morgana.

“It’s okay. I’ll just wait til next week when we have our get together with everyone else. Also, I won’t be here Christmas morning anyway. I’ll be at my mum’s,” Merlin said.

“You’ll still be here for Christmas Eve, right?” Yvonne asked.

“Yes, I plan to leave late that night.”

“Oh good. We’ll have our big dinner with everyone that night since we’ll all be here together and I wouldn’t want you to miss it,” she said with a smile.

Merlin smiled back but it didn’t reach his eyes. He felt bad inside. With just the short time he’d spent with Arthur’s grandmother, he really liker her and hated lying to her. Merlin didn’t consider this happening when he thought of this idea.

As they neared the barn, Arthur caught up with them. Merlin disentangled himself from Morgana and Gwen and moved close to Arthur.

“What did father want?” Morgana asked.

“It was nothing,” Arthur answered as he slid his hand into Merlin’s while he looked at his sister. “Shall we keep going?”

Morgana looked between them as she turned back around and started walking. Arthur and Merlin put a little distance between them and the others so they could talk without being overheard.

“Is everything okay? He didn’t figure us out, did he?” Merlin immediately asked.

“No, not at all. My father just wanted to make sure the gift he got you yesterday would be good for you.”

“He got me something?” That truly surprised Merlin.

“Yes, he had picked up something for Vivian before we broke up. He went out and returned it and got something for you instead.”

“Wow, I was expecting him to get me anything.”

Arthur shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. How’s things been out here with them?”

“Great. Your grandmother is so nice. How did she have a son turn out like Uther?”

Arthur laughed out loud at that, grabbing the attention of the three in front of them. They didn’t question him and carried on with their conversation. “I honestly couldn’t tell you but I’m glad you’re getting along with my grandmother. You’re the only other person besides Gwen I’ve brought home that she liked. She hated it when we broke up but was glad she started dating Morgana so she could still be around.”

Merlin was silent after that for a moment. He knew Arthur said that as a good thing that his grandmother liked him but it only made him feel worse. “She’ll probably not like me once this is over,” he eventually said.

“Nah, I’ve already thought of what to tell them. I’ll make them think I did something stupid and messed it up. It’ll be my fault and there will be no reason for it to make you look bad. Why do you think she’ll not like you?”

Merlin sighed. “This was my idea. I don’t want you to take all the blame. That’s not far to you.”

“It’s fine, Merlin. They probably won’t be too surprised it it’s my fault with my track record of relationships.”

“Just don’t make it too bad then so we can still be friends without it looking odd.”

 

After about an hour or so of walking around outside, the five of them made their way back to the house. Uther had the fire going for them in the sitting room and was reading a book in his armchair when they entered. Yvonne disappeared into the kitchen as the couples took their previous spots.

Arthur sat at one end of the couch and angled himself against the arm and back of the couch so that he could pull Merlin close to him, resting his arm against the back of the couch. All for show of course and Merlin was went along with it. Yvonne returned a few minutes later carrying a tray of hot coco for everyone. Once everyone had their mug, she sat down on the other end of the couch.

It felt so right and peaceful to Arthur, sitting there with his family and Merlin at his side. His father was being civil toward everyone and better than his normal self, Morgana was happy curled up with Gwen at her side and his grandmother was chatting away to Merlin about the plays he’s been in. The only thing that could make this even better is if his mother was alive and there with them. Even though he never got to actually meet her, he liked to think she would have liked Merlin too, just like the rest of his family. He felt tears start to well up and he quickly blinked them away before any could see. But it didn’t escape Merlin’s notice.

“Everything alright?” he whispered into his ear.

“Yes, it’s fine.”

Merlin wasn’t convinced but he didn’t press the matter because he knew Arthur wouldn’t want to talk about whatever was bothering him at the moment.

 

Merlin waited until they were alone in Arthur’s room to ask him about it.

“I was just thinking what it would be like if my mum was here,” he said as he slid into bed.

“Oh,” was all Merlin could say as he got into bed. “I’m sorry to bring it up.”

Arthur shook his head. “No, it’s okay. I don’t mind. I was thinking how happy she would have been with how things are going. Well, I hope she would. It’s hard to know since she died before I got to know her.”

“I see no reason why she wouldn’t be. You’re doing well with your career to be as young as you are and she would be proud of you. And while she’s not Morgana’s birth mother, I know she would be happy for her as well to be marrying the love of her life. You’re both children that would make nay parent happy.”

Arthur looked at Merlin and gave him a half-smile. “Thank you, Merlin. I think she would have like you too.” He was anxious that he might have overstepped a boundary by saying the last part but he couldn’t help it.

“I’m sure I would have liked her as well.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes, both wanting to make some kind of mood but didn’t know how.

“Well, another day down. Three more to go,” Merlin said as slid down into the bed.

“Yeah, so far this hasn’t blown up in our faces,” Arthur said as he reached over to turn the lamp off. “Goodnight, Merlin.”

“Night.”

Merlin tried his best to go sleep but couldn’t stop thinking about Arthur. This whole plan was becoming harder that he expected and he didn’t know what to do. He thought he’s be able to keep his feelings at bay but the more Arthur held his hand or cuddled with him on the couch, the harder it became to give in. It’s all just for his family, he reminded himself. It wasn’t real.

There’s no way Arthur felt the same way for him.If he actually liked Merlin, he would have said something by now for sure. He never showed a problem with asking people out before so he must only see Merlin as a friend. His little story about liking him since the day they met must of have just been for his grandmother’s benefit. There’s no way that could be true.

Merlin tossed and turned all night before finally falling asleep some time in the early morning hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping to have the next chapter out sometime tomorrow. At the moment, it looks like this will be either 4 or 5 chapters total.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much for trying to post a chapter every day. These 10-11 hour shifts at work have made it hard to finished this fic. I will try my best to have it finished by tomorrow!

 

December 22nd

Despite going to sleep so late, Merlin awoke at his usual six A.M. without trying. He groaned when looked at the clock but knew it would be impossible to go back sleep. As he started to slid out of bed, he realized there was something on him that prevented him from moving. He looked down to see Arthur's arm wrapped around his waist.

Merlin glanced over to Arthur was still asleep but significantly closer to him than when they went to bed. Merlin laid there for a moment to figure out what to do next. The selfish part of him wanted to stay right where he was until Arthur woke up, but he knew he couldn't do that. It might be awkward when Arthur did wake up and he didn't want that. The blond was used to sharing the bed with someone and probably just did it out of habit, Merlin reasoned.

It took some maneuvering to get free from Arthur's grasp without waking him up. Once he was free, Merlin grabbed some clothes and made his way to take a shower. Arthur was still asleep when he was finished. He debated about waking him but decided to just let him sleep. Since Arthur him he was welcome to go about the house without him, Merlin decided to go make himself coffee.

The house was quiet as he made his way down to the kitchen. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he entered the kitchen and saw Yvonne standing there. He didn't think anyone else was up yet.

"Good morning," she greeted. "I see I'm not the only early riser. I was about to make some tea. Would you like that or coffee?"

"Coffee would be great right now. I can make it while you make your tea," Merlin said as he walked toward the coffee maker.

"Nonsense. You're a guest here so have a seat and I'll make it for you. I don't mind making it for you," she said as she turned away.

Merlin slid onto a stool and island counter with a "thank you."

"Are you enjoying your stay here so far?" Yvonne asked when set the water to boil.

"Yes, I am. Your home is lovely. Arthur has mentioned it before but didn't do it justice."

"I'm not surprised. As he grew older, he tried not to flaunt the family wealth, not that Uther had raised him to do so. We just wanted him and Morgana to be proud of where they come from."

Merlin chewed on his bottom lip as he debated on asking Yvonne something personal about Arthur but didn't want to be nosey.

He didn't get a choice in the matter when she said, "If you have something to say, Merlin, feel free to say it."

"I don't want to pry into something I shouldn't, but I was wondering about Arthur's childhood. He doesn't talk about it much."

Yvonne gave him an interesting look as she handed him his cup of coffee. "Sugar or anything for the coffee?"

"Sugar please."

She handed him the sugar and finished making her tea. "What would you like to know?" she asked as she slid onto the stool next to Merlin.

"Did Uther raise him and Morgana on his own after his mother...passed?"

Yvonne nodded "He tried at first until I convinced him to move back here with me and I helped. Uther wasn't in then best place after Ygraine passed away to raise two children, especially with one as a newborn. The first few years were the hardest but we got through it."

"Sorry if that was too personal."

Yvonne smiled at him. "Merlin, it's all eight to ask. You are dating my grandson and while you two aren't engaged like Morgana, I can tell you're serious about each other. Besides Gwen, you're the only other person he's dated to even be interested and ask about his childhood so I'm happy to share it with you."

Merlin sipped his coffee to avoid responding to them being serious. It bother him though that none of Arthur's past girlfriends cared to ask his family about him. A couple of them he even dated for over a year and none thought to ask when he brought them home. Did they only see his families money and not care about him?

They chatted more as they finished their drinks. Morgana and Gwen soon joined them and Yvonne whipped up some breakfast for them. After they finished eating, Yvonne asked Merlin if he'd like yonder some old photo albums of Arthur.

Merlin replied with a grin, "Yes please."

 

Sometime later, Arthur abruptly woke up. He looked at the clock to see it was almost eight o'clock. He was disappointed to see the other side of the bed empty and Merlin was already out of the room instead of still laying next to him. Was it too much to ask fit him to be able to wait up next to his friend/guy he had feelings for just once while he was here? Man that was just pathetic, he told himself.

He forced himself out of bed, pushing his thoughts about Merlin to the back of his mind, and went to take a quick shower.

The shower went a little longer than expected when thoughts of Merlin in his bed came up. When he was finished, he stepped out the shower a little ashamed of himself when there was a knock at his bedroom door. "Just a moment," he called as he started to dry himself off.

The knocking continued. Arthur wrapped the towel around his waist and hurried to the door. He opened it enough to stick his head out and saw Morgana. "What do you want that is so urgent?"

"I came to talk to you about something," she replied.

"I just got out of the shower. Can you give me a moment?"

"Make it quick," she said as she crossed her arms against her chest.

Arthur closed the door and tried not to jump to conclusions about what she wanted as he finished drying off and got dressed. What on earth was so important that she had to talk to him so early?

He braced himself as he opened the door and stepped back so she could enter. Morgana peered around the room, pausing at the unmade bed, before turning back to her brother. "How are things going with Merlin?"

"Things are going well," he replied.

She "hmm'd" though she didn't sounded convinced as she walked around the room. "So you two really are together now?"

Arthur felt his stomach drop but he didn't show any signs that her question bothered him. "Of course we are. I told you that two days ago. Have you not been paying attention or forgot?"

Morgana ignored his question. "I still find it odd neither you or Merlin said anything about this to me and Gwen. Merlin is close to both of us and we've known about every person he's liked."

"Like who?"

"Don't try to change the subject. You've also always told me when you started a new relationship whether it's just a passing comment in conversation or inviting me to lunch so I can meet them. Why the secrecy now?"

Arthur clenched his hands into fists. "Maybe because none of my past relationships worked out and now that I'm actually with someone I've really cared about for a while, I wanted to see how it would go before telling you. Merlin is my beat friend and I hate to ruin that friendship if this doesn't work out. So yes, we didn't want to jump the gun and tell our friends before we made sure this was going to work first without the pressure from you all. I'm especially glad we waited since Gwen said you've all been waiting for us to get together."

Arthur didn't mean to get angry at her, it just came out. Despite it all being not true in the present circumstances, Arthur did feel this way if him and Merlin were to date. The possibility of losing Merlin altogether if the relationship went bad is what kept him confessing his feelings years ago. It did help make a stronger and more believable impact on Morgana. "Do you think that we're faking this relationship?"

Morgana sighed. "Honesty, I do. Not as much now but I did because I know you don't like being alone for the holidays. The family can be a little demanding at times and I'm sorry if I've been part of the reason for you feeling that way. I don't want you to feel like you have to lie to us. But..." she trailed off as she looked away from him.

"But what?"

Morgana looked back at him. "But I guess I was wrong about you two. You are dating."

Arthur couldn't help but laugh from a mix of relief and hearing his sister admit she thought she was wrong. Morgana did not do that often, especially to Arthur. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch that. Did you say you were wrong?" He as he cupped his hand around his ear and tilted his head toward her.

Morgana rolled her eyes and said, "Oh don't rub it in. I do hope this works out well for the both of you."

"Thank you, Morgana," Arthur said, lowering his hand and gave her a genuine smile. "I hope so too."

Before it became too sentimental between them, Morgana heard toward the door. She places her hand on the door knob and glanced back at Arthur. "If in find out that you just lied straight to my face, I'll kill you." She opened the door and stepped out, not shutting the door behind her. "If you're wondering where Merlin is, grandmother is showing him old photo albums of you," she said as she walked away.

Arthur barely registered her threat as he raced out of the room to find Merlin and his grandmother. He didn't know what kind of photos she'd show him but he was sure it would be the embarrassing kind.

 

Merlin sat next to Yvonne at a table in the library, because of course they had a library, and listened to the stories behind the various photos of young Arthur. He was enjoying every second of it.

The photos ranged from when he was born up to when he started university and dwindled from there. There were lots of photos of him playing football throughout the years. Merlin loved some of the pictures from the adolescent years with Morgana during her big punk/goth phase. She mellowed out with it by the time Merlin had met her but he thought it was a good look for her. He was going to bring it up to her later.

When the door opened, both Merlin and Yvonne looked up to see Arthur, slightly panting. Did he just run here?, Merlin thought. Arthur straightened himself up and walked toward them. Merlin could tell by his body language that something was bothering him.

"I hear you're showing old photos of me," he said as he reached them.

Yvonne smiled at him, "Merlin wanted to know more about your childhood and I was happy to oblige."

Arthur's expression softened as he turned his gaze down to Merlin. "It was your idea?"

"Well yes, but not the pictures. She offered and I couldn't resist. You don't talk a lot about your past so I thought I could ask your grandmother," Merlin explained as the tips of his ears turned red.

He looked adorable like that and his explanation helped ease some of Arthur's anxiety about Merlin seeing the photos. Arthur hadn't realized Merlin was that interested in him.

They continued to stare at each other until Yvonne asked, “Why don’t you pull up a chair and add some of your own commentary?”

Arthur looked away from Merlin as he pulled a chair over next to Merlin and sat down. He had to lean in close to Merlin in order to see the albums. He grabbed one of the albums and slid it toward him. “Oh, that one isn’t photos of you, Arthur. I must have grabbed it by mistake,” Yvonne said.

“What is it?” he asked as he started to flip open the cover.

“Photos of your parents before you were born.”

Arthur hesitated on the first page as he stared at the first picture. “I don’t think I’ve seen these before. Is it okay if I look through them?”

“You are more than welcome to see them, Arthur. I thought you had already seen these before or I would have shown them to you already. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s alright,” Arthur said as he started to flip the page.

He didn’t say anything else as he looked through the album, pausing at some of the pictures before moving on. Merlin couldn’t help but look along as well and Arthur didn’t seem to mind. He could see where that Arthur got his blond hair and blue eyes from his mother Ygraine. She was quite beautiful as well.

It was a surprise to see how happy Uther looked in the photos. Arthur had never seen him look that way before.

“I didn’t think Uther knew how to smile,” Merlin said. He immediately realized who he said that in from and looked to Yvonne with an apologetic expression.

“It’s okay, Merlin. It’s a pretty fair observation. My son used to be a much happier person,” explained Yvonne. “Ygraine’s death changed him.”

They were silent after that as Arthur continued through the album. Eventually, he came to a picture of Ygraine holding a baby girl. She was looking down at the baby with a huge smile on her face.

“That’s the day Morgana came to live with them. I’m still unhappy with him having an affair all those years ago, and while I know he still regrets it and your mother never forgave him, it did bring us Morgana. Ygraine loved her like her own and was more than happy to raise her since she couldn’t have her own after Morgana’s birth mother gave her up.”

Merlin felt like he was prying into his friends’ lives when he shouldn’t be as he heard all of this. He knew Morgana and Arthur were half-siblings but that was the extent of his knowledge so it felt odd knowing the intimate details of the Pendragon family; especially if Morgana wasn’t comfortable with him knowing. He was going to have to talk to her about this later. He considered leaving in that moment but the look on Arthur’s face kept him at his side. He shifted in his chair so that he could comfortably wrap his arm around the other’s shoulders and placed his hand on top of Arthur’s free hand.

Arthur leaned into Merlin’s embrace as he came to the last page. The photo was of a very pregnant Ygraine, getting into a car. She was smiling as she waved at the camera. “Was this…” Arthur began to ask as he trailed off already knowing the answer.

“That’s her on the way to the hospital to have you,” Yvonne said with a sad smile.

Arthur didn’t say anything else as he stared at the photo. Then, without a word, he closed the album and stood up, rushing Merlin off of him. “Excuse me,” he said as he walked toward the door.

Merlin called after him but he didn’t stop. He looked over to Yvonne, “Sorry but I should go after him and make sure he’s okay. Thank you for showing me the pictures. I really appreciate it.”

“Anytime dear,” she said.

Merlin nearly ran out of the library to try and catch up with Arthur but he wasn’t in sight. He hoped Arthur didn’t go somewhere in the house he hadn’t been yet. This house was huge and he didn’t want to spend forever searching for him, not that he wouldn’t. The first place he checked was Arthur’s bedroom and found it locked. That didn’t take long.

He gently knocked on the door. “Arthur, can I come in?”

“I just want to be alone, Merlin,” came the muffled reply.

“But I don’t want you to be alone right now. You can either let me in or I’m going to sit right outside the door until you let me in. Your choice.”

A minute later, Merlin heard movement on the other side of the door and it slowly opened. Arthur was already retreating back to the bed when he entered. He closed the door and locked it so no one else could barge in. He walked over to his side of the bed and laid down facing Arthur on his side, who was laying toward him but not looking at him.

“You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to okay? I’m just here in case you need talk to someone.”

 

Arthur only acknowledged Merlin with a nod. He felt ridiculous for how he was acting. He didn’t want Merlin to see him like this. He always acted he had everything together when in reality he didn’t. He looked at Merlin to see him move onto his back and stare up at the canopy, content with spending his time waiting for him to speak. Would just a friend do this? He could think of any of his other friends who would do this for him, except maybe Lance. He wouldn't lay in the bed with him though.

Could this mean that Merlin had feelings for him? The man did just spend all morning with his grandmother willing looking at old pictures of him and hearing about his childhood. If only he had someone he could talk about this with. But this was all a issue he should worry about later. He needed to get through what just happened and Merlin was the best person to discuss it with. He'd grown up with only one parent too.

"One of the reasons I like to date during the holidays is because it distracts me from missing my mum. Is that weird or just pathetic seeing how I never knew her?" He said, breaking the silence.

Merlin turned his head to look straight at him. “No, Arthur, it’s not. She’s still your mother. I always think about my dad a lot this time of year. There’s nothing wrong with missing them.”

“I just don’t know what came over me when I saw those pictures. My father never really talked about her when I was growing up. My grandmother would tell us things when he wasn't around,” Arthur said.

“I have vague memories with my father since I was pretty young when he died. But seeing those photos of your mum,” Merlin said as he turned back onto his side, “showed that she was amazing woman. She seemed like a caring person to accept Morgana into the household because there is no way that could have been easy for her.” That got Arthur to smile a little. “And I think you got more than just your looks from her.”

Arthur raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you saying I’m good looking?”

Merlin smiled and only shrugged. “I can’t believe those pictures of Morgana as a teen though.”

Arthur chuckled. “Uther wasn't a fan of it at all and I think that’s part of the reason why she did it. She started it after we found out that we were only half-siblings. She was quite the little rebel then. ”

"I've got to hear more about that."

Arthur grinned and said, "Sure thing." He went on to tell Merlin all kinds of stories about Morgana and then himself. Once he started, he couldn't stop and Merlin was intently listening.

They lost track of time and didn't even know how long they'd been in the bedroom. It was until Arthur's stomach rumbled that they decided to leave and get some food.

"I can't believe I forgot breakfast," Arthur said as he stood up.

"I think be okay if you skip a meal," Merlin joked.

"Are you saying I'm fat?" Art ht asked as he glanced back to Merlin.

"I said no such thing," he said though he was still smiling. "What made you forget? Still too late?"

"No, it was all Morgana's fault. She came to talk to me shortly after I woke up. Oh shit."

Merlin walked toward Arthur. "What's wrong?"

"We were right about her being suspicious about our relationship." Arthur filled him in on what his sister had said.

Merlin looked worried. "We only have a couple of more days today. We'll be fine. Let's go get some food and forget about it." He walked to the door and walked out, waiting for Arthur on the other side.

Arthur pushed the thoughts out of his mind and followed after Merlin. He felt better after talking to him. And in that moment, he knew he had to tell Merlin how he felt. But how?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will try to have a chapter up sometime in the evening on the 24th. The last chapter may just come the day after Christmas. We'll have to wait and see.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so late. On top of having to rewrite this chapter a lot, I got really sick Sunday night and now just feeling well enough to complete this chapter today.

 

 

December 23rd

While at breakfast, Merlin learned that the Christmas Eve dinner was more of a large party. Yvonne went other with everyone what needed to be done by the end of the day. Since he knew how to do some baking, he was asked to help in the kitchen. Merlin didn't mind at all and was happy to help. Arthur was sent with Uther on tree duty and make sure it was ready in the room the party would be in.

He waved bye to Arthur as he left the table and followed his father. Merlin helped wash the dishes and waited for instructions on what to do next. He was in charge of the sugar cookies and he figured he could handle that just fine. Yvonne showed him where everything was that he would need and Merlin got to work.

 

It was some time after noon and Arthur still hadn't told Merlin. He'd planned to talk with him today but so far, he hadn't been able to get Merlin alone. Since they'd been assigned to help in different rooms, they'd been separated all day. In one way it was a blessing because it gave him time to prepare what he would say, but it also gave him more time to postpone or eventually chicken out.

Uther and Arthur mostly worked in silence throughout the day, which was fine with Arthur. He wasn’t much in the mood to talk. But when Uther did talk, it caught him off guard.

“Do you think your relationship with Merlin will become serious?”

Arthur nearly dropped an ornament his trying to place on the tree. He glanced over his shoulder to see his father going about decorating and not looking at him. So he turned back to the tree, placing the ornament, and replied, “I think it’s a little too early to know how things will go between us, but…I would like to think it will be.”

Uther made an approving noise but didn’t say anything else. They didn’t really discuss things like this even when Arthur dated woman. Uther wasn’t much for talking about feelings so Arthur figured he would drop the conversation there but he didn’t. “Well, he seems like a good man. Does he make you happy?”

“Yeah, he sure does,” he said as he picked up another ornament.

“Then make sure you hold onto it, son. Don’t mess it up like it did.”

Arthur slowly turned to look at Uther and saw the sad expression on his face. “I’ll try my best.”

Uther looked at him for a moment before nodding and turning back to what he was working on, ending the conversation.

Arthur was glad when Merlin and the others soon joined them in the room. He laughed as Merlin drew closer to him.

“What’s so funny?” Merlin asked.

“Just, come here,” Arthur said as he gestured for him to step closer. He gently wiped some flour off of Merlin’s cheek. “You had a bit of flour on your face.”

“Oh, thanks,” Merlin said with a little bit of a blush appearing.

“Stop messing around over there and come help set these tables up,” Morgana said to them as she passed them.

“Sure thing,” Arthur said. He gave Merlin once last look before walking toward his sister.

It took a couple of hours for the to get all the small round tables and chairs set up for guests to eat at and the tables for the food trays and drinks. Merlin helped Gwen lay out the red tablecloths while Morgana and Arthur worked on setting out the alcohol.

As they worked, Arthur kept glancing over to Merlin every chance he got. This wasn’t the time to tell him, he wanted it to be special. Maybe if he got Merlin alone at the party tomorrow night, he could tell him then. After liking him for so long, Arthur didn’t want to just blurt it out at any time, so the party would be a good time. That would give him time to figure out exactly what to say.

 

* * *

 

 

December 24th

Arthur stood in front of the mirror in his bedroom, tying his tie, nervous about how this night would go.

“I was thinking I’d leave tonight after the party,” Merlin said, grabbing his attention. “I should probably go ahead and call for a taxi now. What time should I tell them to be here?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You can borrow my car and leave when you want and then bring the car back here tomorrow evening or on Boxing Day, whichever you prefer. I’m just going to be here so I won’t need it.”

“Well, thank you, Arthur. That’ll certainly save me some money.”

“There’s no sense in you taking a taxi when you can just borrow my car since I’m not using it. Just don’t let anything happen to it.” He adjusted his tie and turned around to face Merlin. “Alright, how do I look?”

Merlin looked him over from head to toe, probably a little longer than he should have. “You look…great. What about me? Think I’ll pass?”

“You look pretty good yourself. They’ll love you,” Arthur replied with a little smile. “You actually look nice all dressed up. You should do it more often.”

Merlin rolled his eyes. “I’m more comfortable in my regular clothes. And I don’t really have a reason to dress like this.”

Arthur shrugged. “I’m just saying it’s a nice change from you wearing those scarves all the time.”

Merlin chuckled. “I’m sorry but you just don’t appreciate my style.”

“Oh, you think that’s stylish? If you say so.” He checked the time. “We should go before someone comes looking for us.”

 

Family and guests began arriving around five. Merlin stuck by Arthur’s side as they mingled with everyone. There were a couple of awkward encounters when Arthur was asked if he had a girlfriend and his answer was he was dating Merlin. It seemed not everyone in the family was completely okay with the Pendragon siblings being not straight.

As they stepped away from some who worked with Uther, Morgana ran up to them. “Agravaine’s here,” she said.

Arthur’s head whipped around from side to side looking for his uncle before asking, “Where? I don’t see him.”

“He’s over by the drink table. I wasn’t quick enough to hide from him. He was polite this time but he still hates my guts. I wish he would just stop coming altogether. It would make us all happy,” Morgana said as she crossed her arms against her chest.

Arthur reached out and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I’m sorry but don’t waste your time worrying about him. Go on and enjoy the rest of the party.”

“Thank you, Arthur. Oh shit, here he comes.” Morgana took off in the other direction, getting lost in a crowd.

“Arthur, good to see you,” Agravaine said behind them.

Arthur tensed as he and Merlin turned around to face his uncle. “It’s nice to see you too.”

Merlin looked Agravaine over and could tell he was an unfriendly person. It was hard to imagine this man was Ygraine’s brother.

“And who might you be?” Agravaine asked as he looked at Merlin.

“This is Merlin, my boyfriend,” Arthur replied.

“I see,” was all he said as he continued to look at Merlin. “I have your Christmas gift for you so I’ll go ahead and give it to you now since I won’t be staying long tonight.” He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out an envelope.

Arthur took it with a curt “thank you” and Agravaine walked away.

“What a pleasant man,” Merlin said. “What is his deal with Morgana?”

“He doesn’t like her since Uther cheated on Ygraine. I can understand being mad at Uther but it’s a bit unfair to take it out on her when she had to decision or control over what happened.” Arthur looked at the envelope in his hand. “I better go put this in my room. I’ll be right back.”

Merlin watched Arthur weave through the people and exit the room. He couldn’t see where Morgana or Gwen was so he didn’t know what to do. He walked around the room and saw a kid about eleven or twelve sitting at table, reading a book. He approached the boy, “What are you reading?”

The boy looked up at Merlin, “Harry Potter.”

“I love Harry Potter. Which book is it?”

“The Order of the Phoenix,” the boy said.

“What do you think of it so far?” Merlin asked as he sat down in a chair next to him.

“I hate Umbridge. She’s a horrible woman.”

Merlin laughed and said, “Yes she is. I’m Merlin by the way. What’s your name?”

“I’m Mordred.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mordred. Are you having fun tonight?”

Mordred shrugged his shoulders. “Not really. I don’t really like parties and I’m the only person here my age so there isn’t anyone to really talk to. So that’s why I brought my book.”

“That was a good idea. I’m not a big fan of parties either.”

“Why are you here?”

Got to love kids’ blunt questions, Merlin thought. “I’m here with Arthur.”

Just as he said his name, Arthur appeared. “Merlin, I’ve been looking for you. I was only gone for a couple of minutes and then I come back and can’t find you.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know what to do on my own and then I saw Mordred here. We’ve been talking about Harry Potter.”

“I hate to break up the discussion, but I passed someone on my way to find you who wants to meet you,” Arthur said.

“Alright then,” he rose from his chair and looked down at Mordred. “It was nice to meet, Mordred. Enjoy the book.” Merlin followed Arthur back through the crowd to meet whoever.

 

It was close to dinner being served when Elyan entered the room.

“Did you know he was coming tonight?” Merlin whispered to Arthur as they watched Gwen walk over to him and they hugged.

“No. I hadn’t thought of Gwen inviting him. I don’t know why I didn’t think to ask,” Arthur whispered back.

“Well, this will be interesting then.”

They continued to watch Gwen and Elyan as she led him over to be introduced to Uther and Yvonne.

Once their greetings were over, Gwen looked around the room and pointed them out to Elyan. He waved before walking their way. “Arthur, Merlin, it’s good to see you both. Gwen mentioned to me yesterday that you’d be here, Merlin. I was surprised to hear you would be here but she didn’t get the chance to explain.”

There was no way around not telling Elyan why Merlin was there. Granted, it was obvious this fake relationship would get back to their friends once Morgana or Gwen could share it, but they didn’t expect to have to pretend in front of any of them.

“It’s because we’re together now and I wanted to bring him home for Christmas,” Arthur answered.

Elyan looked at each of them for a moment and then smiled. “Congratulations then! We should have a drink to celebrate that.”

“Just a small one for me. I haven’t eaten anything yet and I have to drive later tonight,” Merlin said as they made their way to the drink table.

“You’re not staying the night?” Elyan asked.

“No, I’m going to my mum’s house so I can spend the day with her tomorrow.”

“Are you going too Arthur?” Elyan said as he poured out the drinks for them.

“No, I’m staying here,” Arthur said as he took his glass.

“Oh, I figured you’d go with Merlin if he came up here to your family’s house.”

“It’s fine, Elyan. There’s always next year,” Merlin said.

They made their way to an empty spot on the wall so they wouldn’t be out the way for them to keep talking.

“It’s great to have you here, Elyan,” Arthur said.

“Thanks, I’m glad I was invited to the party and to stay the night. Your family didn’t have to invite me,” he said before taking a sip of his drink.

“You’re about to be a part of the family once Morgana and Gwen are married. Expect to be getting more invitations like this in the future,” said Arthur.

Elyan shook his head. “I don’t think I will ever get used to this then. How long have you been up here, Merlin?”

“Since last Saturday.”

“And how long have you two been dating?”

“It’s been a month now,” Merlin answered.

Elyan nodded his head and took another sip. He didn’t ask any more questions about their relationships which was a blessing. Merlin didn’t know how much of this he could take. He had to keep reminding himself he only had a few more hours of this and then it would be all over with so things could go back to how they used to be.

They only problem was that Merlin had completely fallen in love with Arthur. His feelings for him had always been strong but after spending these past five days with him and listening to him finally open up about his mother showed that it was all love. He didn’t know how he was going to get by knowing this as fake relationship ended.

Merlin was dragged from his thoughts when Arthur nudged his shoulder and told him dinner was being served. They sat their drinks down at the nearest table and made their way to get food. Merlin barely paid attention to what kind of food he put on his plate as his mind was elsewhere. Morgana and Gwen joined them at their table once they sat down.

Once all the guests had taken their seats, Uther rose from his chair and signaled for everyone’s attention. “I’ll keep this short since I can tell many of you are ready to eat,” he paused when a few people laughed and then continued. “I would like to thank everyone for joining us tonight for our annual Christmas party. This has been a big year for our family and I would like for everyone to join me to raise a glass to my daughter Morgana on her engagement to Ms. Gwen Smith.” Everyone in the room raised their glass and toasted to them. “Now, enjoy your meal and the rest of the evening.” Uther sat back down and everyone turned to their food.

Merlin tried to stop focusing on his worries and enjoy the moment with his friends. He should enjoy this party; it wasn’t everyday he was invited to something like this. And his friends would figure out if something was bothering him sooner or later and he didn’t want that to happen.

Arthur was anxious throughout dinner. He needed to find a way to get Merlin alone so he could talk to him without anyone overhearing. That certainly wouldn’t be easy to explain. Maybe he should wait closer to the end of the party? Arthur felt like he was making this harder than it should have been.

Merlin’s plan to enjoy the moment soon failed when the conversation moved toward the future.

“I really look forward to the four of us spending together after we get married. We’ll have to plan some ‘couple things’ to do,” Gwen said.

“Let’s not get too hasty, Gwen. Arthur and I have only been together for only a month,” Merlin replied.

“Sorry, I wasn’t meaning for it to sound like I was pressuring you or anything, but come one, don’t you think you’ll stay together? I hope so after how long it took you to get together.”

“Don’t worry, Gwen, just ignore Merlin. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Arthur said to keep the conversation light.

Merlin gave Gwen a smile but didn’t say anything else, remaining quiet throughout dinner and dessert. He hadn’t expected Gwen to be so excited about them dating. She was now on the list of people who would be disappointed when they “broke up.” That wasn’t going to be fun.

 

The music changed from only Christmas music to regular songs. “Shall we dance?” Morgana asked the table.

“I’ll sit this one out. I’m not much of a dancer,” Merlin said as the others agreed with Morgana.

“On, come on, Merlin. It’ll be so much fun!” Gwen said.

“I bet Arthur can teach you a few moves,” Morgana said, smiling at Merlin and Arthur.

“No, I wouldn’t want to embarrass Arthur with my bad dancing.”

Morgana rose from her chair. “Suit yourself then.” She took Gwen’s hand and pulled her to the empty space in the room that served as the dance floor.

Elyan jumped up and joined them along with some of the other guests. Arthur remained at the table with Merlin. He tapped his fingers along to the beat as he watched the others dance.

“You can go dance without me. It won’t hurt my feelings,” Merlin said, glancing over to him.

“No, I’m fine.” He looked back to Merlin for a moment before asking, “So, you really don’t know how to dance?”

“It’s never been my thing so I’ve avoided whenever I could.”

“Even at all those parties we went to at uni?”

Merlin laughed. “You were too busy dancing with some girl to notice me alone in the corner when you were the one who dragged me to the party in the first place.”

Arthur was silent for a moment. “How about I make it up to you now?”

Merlin wished he could tell what was going through Arthur’s mind in that moment. “Why not?” he said as he threw his hands up. “But if I make you look like a fool, that’s your own fault.”

Arthur grinned as he stood up. He held out his hand to Merlin, who hesitantly took his hand as he stood up. “What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t dance with you?” He led Merlin to the dance floor.

Morgana, Gwen, and Elyan cheered when they joined them. The five of them formed a little circle to dance in and acted like no one else was in the room; though most eyes were on them and watching their silliness. It took Merlin a couple of songs to get comfortable dancing and actually have fun.

“Not as bad as it seems, right?” Arthur asked.

“Shut up,” replied Merlin but his smile showed that Arthur was right.

A few songs later came a slow one. Those who didn’t have someone to dance with left the floor. Merlin and Arthur looked at each other; both wanting to dance but not knowing whether the other was okay with it. Before they could make the decision, someone knocked into Merlin and caused him to fall onto Arthur. Arthur was quick to catch him and not let them fall over. They looked around to see Morgana and Gwen close by and Morgana mouthing “You’re welcome” with a wink.

Merlin straightened himself up but remained close to Arthur, waiting for him to make some kind of move. Arthur gave him a smile small, placing one of Merlin’s hands on his shoulder and his on Merlin’s waist and clasped their other hands together. “Follow my lead,” he said as they started to move to the music. Arthur kept the moves simple, not caring if they were simply swaying to the music as they turned. Merlin did step on his feet a couple of times but Arthur didn’t complain.

“It’s okay, Merlin. Just relax and go with the beat. If you like, I can give you lessons sometime.”

“I know I’m terrible at this so you don’t have to rub it in,” Merlin said.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean it that way.”

“Oh…maybe we should try that then sometime.”

They continued to dance until the song ended. Arthur looked at Merlin and knew this was the time to tell him. “Want to take a break?” he asked.

“Yes, please,” Merlin said. “I’ve had enough dancing to last me for a while.”

“Let’s go over here,” Arthur said as Merlin headed toward their table. He led him over to a corner away from everyone else so they could be alone.

“Why are we alone in a corner and away from everyone?” Merlin asked.

“I want to talk to talk to you about something and don’t want anyone to overhear,” Arthur answered. “First, I want to start with thanking you for coming here with me. I don’t know what I would I have done without you.”  
“Probably been miserable,” Merlin interjected.

“Most likely but I didn’t enjoy this week just because someone was here with me, it was because…”

“Hey, Arthur and Merlin,” Morgana called out across the room, interrupting him.

“What?” he asked as he glared over at her.

“You do realize the two of you are standing under mistletoe, right?” They both glanced up at the ceiling to see there in fact was some mistletoe hanging above them. “Come on now, you know what you have to do,” she said as she walked closer to them. A few other people glanced their way to see what was going on.

Arthur looked down to see Merlin already looking back at him. “Think we should do it?” he whispered.

“I don’t think Morgana will let us get out of it,” Merlin replied.

“Do you want to?” Arthur didn’t care if his sister and others were getting impatient with them.

Merlin’s eyes darted down to Arthur’s lips before looking back up and said, “Yes.”

Arthur was nervous as hell when he stepped closer to Merlin. He did not expect their first kiss to be like this and wish it was under different circumstances. He hesitantly placed his hand on Merlin’s cheek, leaning into Merlin, slowly closing his eyes as their lips pressed together. There wasn’t much else to it until Merlin kissed back and grabbed Arthur by the waist, pulling their bodies right against each other.

They soon forgot they were in a room full of people as they moved to deepen the kiss, bumping noses at first but soon the right angle. Arthur slid his hand back into Merlin’s hair, giving a little tug, and loving the reaction it got out of Merlin. He was going to have to remember that.

It was amazing to finally give into temptation but it was short lived.

“Get a room you two,” Elyan said to them while laughing.

Merlin was the first to pull away at that, remembering they were in a room full of people. Arthur slowly opened his eyes to look at Merlin, unable to read to his expression but knew something was wrong. Those who had been looking turned their attention away from them, giving Arthur the chance to ask if Merlin was okay.

“I’m sorry, Arthur. I’m…fine. Excuse me.” Merlin quickly turned and walked away from him and headed straight to the door.

Merlin needed to leave now before he said something crazy like “I love you.” Maybe he could slip out of the house without anyone noticing. He all out ran to Arthur’s room to grab his bag. Arthur had left his car keys on the nightstand for him but he felt bad about taking his car. It also meant he’d have to see Arthur again sooner than he was ready for. He picked up his mobile and dialed the taxi service. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any available to pick him up now and he would have to wait since the Pendragon house was so far out. So Arthur’s car it was.

Before leaving, he found a pad of paper and pen and scribbled a quick note to Arthur. He tore the sheet of paper off, folded it and stood it up on the nightstand where his keys were. Merlin didn’t want to just leave without saying something to Arthur, even if it was a note. He picked up his bag and made his way out of the house. Luckily, Merlin didn’t pass anyone as he made his escape. Once he was in the car and pulling away from the house, Merlin called his mum to let her know he was on his way. He gave the house one last before exiting the driveway, hoping Arthur wouldn’t be too upset with him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot apologize enough for how late the ending of this fic is. Between being sick a couple of times, personal issues, and not liking how this chapter was coming out kept me from finishing it. 
> 
> So without further delay, here's our two oblivious idiots getting together!

December 24th

 

Arthur watched Merlin walk away, not sure whether he should go after him or not. Did he do something wrong? Should he just have ignored Morgana and not kissed him?

Morgana walked toward him and held her phone out to him. “I got a nice picture of your kiss. Thought you might like to have it.” Arthur glanced at the phone and had to admit it was a good picture. “I’m so glad I put the mistletoe up,” she said as she pulled her phone back.

“This was all your doing?”

“Oh yes. I put it up while everyone was getting dressed today. You can’t have a Christmas party without mistletoe.”

“Right.” Arthur’s eyes drifted back to the door to see if Merlin was coming back.

“Where did Merlin run off too? I want to get a picture of the four of us tonight,” Morgana said.

“He didn’t say. He just excused himself and walked away,” Arthur said as he crossed his arms against his chest.

“Maybe he just needs a moment to himself? He’s been surrounded by a lot of people tonight and he’s not used to it. You know how our family can be,” Morgana said, trying to reassure Arthur.

“Maybe.” He hadn’t taken his eyes off the door.

Morgana rolled her eyes. “If you’re so worried about him, then why don’t you go after him and check on him?”

“I think I’ll do that. If anyone asks for me, tell them I’ll be back soon.”

“This better not be some plan you two came up with to ditch the party and have sex,” she said as he started to walk away.

“You wish,” he said over his shoulder.

Arthur made his way slowly through the crowd of people. Once he finally made it to the door, he was stopped by his grandmother.

“Where are you running off to, Arthur?” she asked.

“I’m going to go check on Merlin. I won’t be gone long.”

Her expression softened. “Is he sick? Is something wrong?”

“I’m not sure so that’s why I’m going to find him,” he answered.

“Take all the time you need.”

Arthur left the room and made his way to his bedroom because he was pretty sure that’s where Merlin was. He knocked on the door first but when he received no answer, he entered to find the room empty. He looked around and saw that Merlin’s bag was gone along with his keys. Arthur noticed a folded piece of paper on his night stand and walked over to pick it up. It read:

 

> Arthur, I’m sorry to just run off like this but I needed to before I did something stupid. I’ll bring your car back to you on Boxing Day. Happy Christmas,
> 
> M.

Arthur sank onto his bed and re-read the note. He couldn’t believe Merlin would just leave without saying anything to him. It wasn’t like him to run away from situations. Arthur looked back at the note. What the hell did Merlin mean he had to leave before he did something stupid? He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Merlin though he didn’t expect it. Each call went straight to voicemail.

He dropped the phone next to him on the bed after giving up on trying to reach Merlin since it was obvious the other man did not want to speak to him. Arthur wanted, no needed, to speak to Merlin now and explain everything. But what could he do if he couldn’t get ahold of the other? Before he could second guess himself, he picked up his phone and texted Morgana.

A couple of minutes later, Morgana entered the room without knocking. “This better be good, dragging me away from the party.” She looked Arthur over, taking in him in. “Why do you look like a kicked puppy?”

Arthur sighed. “Close the door, please,” he said and waited while she did. “Merlin left,” he said, casting his eyes downward.

“What do you mean he left?”

“When he excused himself from the party, he left for his mum’s.”

Morgana walked toward Arthur. “I thought that’s what he was going to do anyway. Why are you so upset? Separation anxiety already?”

Arthur rolled his eyes before looking up at Morgana. “You’re making me regret asking you here. But yes, Merlin was leaving tonight _after_ the party. After we…kissed, he ran off and left, leaving this note behind.” He handed her the note.

Morgana raised an eyebrow at him as she took the note. “I don’t understand,” she said when she finished.

Arthur realized now that he had to explain their ‘relationship’ to Morgana. He let out a frustrated noise and ran his hand through his hair. “There’s something I have to tell you about our relationship.” He paused, “It’s fake.”

When his sister didn’t laugh at him and shout “I knew it!” Arthur looked up at her. “You’re not reacting the way I thought you would.”

Morgana shrugged her shoulders. “Since you two showed up here I thought it was fake, you know this already. But, I was curious to see what happened since I knew you both liked each other.”

“Well I’m glad we provided some entertainment for you. Wait, did you say that Merlin likes me?”

Morgana shook her head as she smiled at her clueless brother. She sat next to him on the bed, setting the note down and wrapping her arm around his shoulders. “Oh, Arthur, you can be so unobservant sometimes,” she said as she leaned in toward him. “Of course Merlin likes you. There would have to be some kind of feelings there for you if Merlin was willing to put on this act with you and pretend to date you. Plus, he told me years ago that he liked you.”

“Then why didn’t you mention something about it to me before?” Arthur asked as he turned to look at her. “You figured out that I liked him back in uni.”

“It wasn’t my place to tell. Merlin was a little drunk when he admitted it to me and begged me not to say anything when he sobered up.”

Arthur was quite for a minute as he turned away from Morgana. He slid his hands over his face and rested his elbows on his knees. “I’ve messed everything up haven’t I?” he mumbled.

Morgana gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I think things could have been done differently but I don’t think anything is ruined. Why do you think that?”

“Because I should have just asked Merlin out for real ages ago and we wouldn’t be in this situation right now.”

“I think you should go after him right now and talk things out. The sooner you talk, the better the situation will be.”

Arthur removed his hands, “I’ve already tried calling him but couldn’t get a hold of him. He doesn’t want to talk to me right now. What good will come of me going to his mum’s house if he’s not going to talk to me?”

“This conversation does not need to happen over the phone. You two need to be face to face when you talk. I think Merlin doesn’t fully realize you like him back and he left before he could confess his feelings on the chance that you are only doing this as an act. You need to be honest with one another and stop assuming what the other is feeling.” Morgana removed her as she rose from the bed.

“I don’t even know where his mum’s house is though,” Arthur said, glancing up at her. “Nor do I have a car since Merlin borrowed mine.”

“Take my car. The address is saved in my GPS,” Morgana said without hesitation.

“You’ve been to his mum’s house?” he asked, surprised.

Morgana turned away from Arthur and walked toward his wardrobe. “Oh yes, I’ve been there a couple of times now. Hunith loves me.” She opened the door and pulled a small bag out and turned back around. “I’d suggest packing an overnight bag, you know for just in case,” she added as she held the bag out for Arthur to take. He glanced from the bag to her. “I’m serious. You never know what could happen and hurry up. It’s at least a two house drive to get there.”

Arthur stood up and snatched the bag from her as he walked to his suitcase and pulled out he whatever he got his hands on first, shoving it into the bag. “What should I tell father about leaving?”

“Leave that to me. You shouldn’t be missed much.”

Arthur zipped up the bag and threw it on his shoulder. “Thank you, Morgana. I really appreciate it.” He moved toward her and pulled her in for a hug.

“Don’t thank me too much. You owe me for this and lying to my face,” she said as she pulled away, giving him a smile.

“I look forward to that,” he responded but still smiled. “But we can figure that out later because I have someone I need to go and confess my love to.”

A few minutes later, Arthur and Morgana exited the house and made their way to her car.

“Text me when you get there so I know you made it,” Morgana said as he tossed his bag into the passenger seat.

“Will do,” he answered as he slid into the driver’s seat. With the navigation ready, he waved to Morgana before driving away from the house. Soon Arthur was on the road to Merlin. He hoped he wouldn’t be turned away and Merlin would be willing to hear him out.

 

Merlin sat curled up on the couch, already changed into his pajamas, listening to his mum’s story. He nodded along as he sipped his hot chocolate though he wasn’t paying much attention to what she was saying. He kept thinking about Arthur and wondered if he made the right decision in leaving. Arthur was about to tell him something before they kissed.

“Merlin, are you alright?” Hunith asked.

“Yeah, mum, I’m fine.” He could tell she wasn’t convinced.

“Are you sure? You’ve been pretty quiet since you got here.”

Merlin set his mug down on the coffee table. “I’m sorry, just tired is all. It’s been an exhausting evening from the party to driving here.”

There was a knock at the door.

"Now who could that be at this time of night?" Hunith said as she started to get out of her chair.

"I'll get it mum," Merlin said jumping up from the couch before her. He figured He figured it He figured it was He figured it was just He figured it was just a neighbor but he wasn't letting him mum be the one to open the door this last at night.

He was surprised to see Arthur standing there when he opened the door. They stared at each other in silence for a moment before Merlin's brain caught up with him and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry to up here like this but there was something I was trying to tell you before you ran off and I was hoping you would give me the chance to do so now," Arthur said.

"You actually drove all the way out here just to talk to me?"

"Well, I tried calling but you wouldn't answer your phone but then I realized this was something that need to be said in person. So here I am."

"Who's at the door, Merlin?" Hunith called from the sitting room.

"It's Arthur," he replied. "Come on in," he said to Arthur as he held the door open.

Hunith walked into the entryway and up to them. "Isn't this a surprise though it's nice to see you again, Arthur," she greeted with a smile.

Arthur smiled back, "Good evening, Ms. Emrys.”

“Please, just call me Hunith.”

“All right. I’m sorry to disturb you and show up so late here but I really need to speak with Merlin, then I’ll be on my way.” He looked from Hunith back to Merlin to see if he would agree to listen.

Merlin crossed his arms against his chest and said, “We can go up to my room and talk.” Merlin turned and started walking toward the stairs.

“Is there anything I can get for you, Arthur? Something to drink?” Hunith asked as they walked away from the door.

“No thank you. I’m good for now,” he said as he reached the stairs.

Hunith nodded. “I’ll leave you two then to your talk. In case I don’t see you afterwards, it was nice to see you again and Happy Christmas,” she said before making her way back into the sitting room.

Arthur started up the stairs behind Merlin and followed him into his bedroom. It was still decorated the same from when Merlin was a teen. He only got to glance around at the surroundings until he heard the door close, pulling him back into the moment.

 Merlin took a couple of steps toward Arthur. He was trying to keep himself from jumping to any conclusions about what he wanted to talk about. “So, what’s so important you had to come down here tonight?” He tried to keep his tone light but he was still nervous.

Arthur ran his hand through his hair and sucked in a deep breath. “Okay, so we’ve been friends for six years now and have been through a lot together. But there has been something I’ve been keeping from you for a while now. It wasn’t until after the past week that I’ve realized how…stupid I was to keep it from you.” Arthur paused for a moment to try and calm his nerves. Once he said this next part there was no going back and even though he now had confirmation about Merlin’s feelings, he was still scared. He looked at Merlin and realized truly how stupid he’d been in waiting so long to tell him. “What I’m trying to get around to telling you is that I like you, Merlin.”

Merlin’s eyes widened and his mouth dropped open a little. “I’m going to need you to repeat yourself to make sure I heard you right.”

Arthur let out a nervous laugh and said, “I like you, since the first day we met. That wasn’t a lie that I told my grandmother. And while I do like you more than ‘like’, I’m not going to get ahead of myself right now. I planned to make this more special and tried to tell you earlier tonight but things got all mucked up with the mistletoe and you leaving early.”

“Sorry about that,” was all Merlin could say. His brain was still trying to catch up to the fact that Arthur just admitted he liked him.

Arthur shook his head, “No, it’s okay. It did hurt but it’s been a crazy week.”

“Why haven’t you said anything sooner?”

Arthur dropped his gaze from Merlin. “I didn’t think you felt the same way about me and I didn’t want to make things awkward between us.”

“I had no idea you felt this way.”

“Well, you mean a lot to me, Merlin. I’ve dated quite a few people since we met but none of them lasted so I figured I was bad at relationships or something was wrong with me. I was worried what would happen if we did date but it things didn’t work out. I decided I would be content with just being friends and always have you than break up and never see you again. What’s your reason for never telling me?” he said, slowly looking back at Merlin.

Merlin bit his bottom lip. “How did you figure out that I felt the same way?”

Arthur gave him a half-smile, “I started getting hints this week but I didn’t want to believe them. It was Morgana who confirmed it for me.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t realize it when I suggest this fake relationship. But when did she tell you? She promised me she wouldn’t.”

“Don’t be mad at her. She only told me after I found your note and asked her want I should do. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be here right now and who knows if or when I would have told you my feelings.”

Arthur was surprised when Merlin started to laugh. “What’s so funny?”

“It’s just…I can’t believe it’s taken us this long to get to this point. We’ve wasted years and been through some terrible relationships when we could have been together instead,” Merlin replied.

Arthur closed the space between. “So does this mean we can make this fake relationship real?”

Merlin pretended to think about it for a second before saying, “Well, it’s about time.”

“I’m going to kiss you know, if that’s okay.”

“Please do.”

Arthur leaned in, running one hand up to cup Merlin’s face and placing the other on his waist. As their lips met, Arthur ran his hand back into Merlin’s hair, remembering how he seemed to like it earlier. Merlin moaned at the touch and wrapped his arms around Arthur’s neck, pulling their bodies close together. Arthur nudged Merlin toward the bed as they continued to kiss. When Merlin’s legs hit the bed, he pulled away from Arthur to drop down on it, pulling him down. Arthur wasn’t prepared for it.

“That was a dignified sound,” Merlin said with a laugh.

“Shut up, Merlin, you just caught me by surprise” Arthur said as he positioned himself on top of Merlin.

Merlin wrapped one hand around Arthur’s shoulder and ran the other through his hair, pulling him down to him. Arthur braced his arm on the bed next to Merlin's head as he leaned back in to continue kissing. He ran his other hand down Merlin's body, stopping at his hips. He started to push the shirt up. Neither of them was sure how far they were going right now but they weren't stopping just yet.

Before Arthur could get Merlin's shirt off, Hunith knocked on the door.

Arthur shot up from Merlin and moved off of him while the other quickly pushed his shirt back down. They felt like teenagers getting caught.

“Yes, mum?” Merlin called out. He really hoped she wouldn’t open the door.

“I just wanted to let you know I was off to bed now and tell you good night. Is Arthur staying the night?”

Merlin turned to Arthur, who said, “If it’s alright with you and mum, I wouldn’t mind staying.”

“Are you sure? What about your family? You had already planned to spend the time with them,” Merlin said.

“I’m sure. They can miss me for one Christmas. I’ll let Morgana know I’m staying and she can tell the others. I’ll smooth things over when I get back.”

“Yes, he’s staying,” Merlin called back to his mum.

“I thought so. Goodnight and I’ll see you two in the morning,” Hunith said.

 “Sorry for the interruption,” Merlin said with a chuckle when she was gone. “I feel like I’m back in school right now.”

“It’s okay. It’s probably for the best she knocked. I wasn’t intending for things to go too far tonight,” Arthur said as he readjusted on the bed.

Merlin nodded in agreement. “As tempting as it was, I agree. I don’t know how you feel about it but I don’t want to rush things between us now.”

“I’m not against that. We can talk about it after tomorrow.”

Merlin yawned. “I’m ready for bed. How about you?”

“Is there another bed I could use?” Arthur asked.

“No, but after sharing your bed, does it matter if we share mine?”

“It’s not that. Yours is just…smaller than mine and I wasn’t sure if we’d both fit.”

Merlin looked at his bed for a moment and then replied, “I think we’ll be fine. It’ll just be a little snug.” He slid off his bed. “Do you need to borrow some clothes to sleep in?”

“I have an overnight bag in the car with some clothes.” Arthur got off the bed as well.

Merlin raised an eyebrow. “You came prepared.”

“It was Morgana’s idea. She made me bring the bag. Let me go get it real quick.”

Arthur quietly made his way through the house and out to his car. His phone vibrated as he reached his car. He pulled it from his pocket to see a text from Morgana asking if he made it okay and if everything has gone well. He replied with “Yes. I’m staying the night here and I’ll explain it all later. See ya Friday.” He slid the phone back into his pocket, grabbed his bag and headed back inside.

When he returned to Merlin’s room, the main light was out with only the lamp on the bedside table on. He saw that Merlin had already grabbed an extra pillow for him and was sitting on the bed waiting for him. “You can change across the hall in the bath,” Merlin said.

“Will do.” Arthur dropped the bag on the floor and dug through it to find pajamas before leaving he room again.

He soon returned and walked toward the bed. “Which side do you want? Next to the wall or edge?” Merlin asked.

“The wall is fine,” Arthur replied. He climbed onto the bed and past Merlin.

“By the way, how did you get here? It didn’t occur to me until you went out to the car that I remembered I had your car,” Merlin said as they adjusted themselves in the small bed.

“Morgana had me borrow her car and already had the address saved in her GPS,” replied Arthur as he fixed the pillow. “Which reminds me, how is it that she’s been here before me?”

“Because she wanted to so I brought her up here on a break. Her and my mum really hit it off so she’s visited a couple of more times with me. If I’d known you wanted to come I would have invited you.”

“I didn’t know how to ask without it making it obvious I liked you.”

“You’re welcome anytime. I’m sure my mum will want us to visit now once I tell her in the morning about us. And speaking of that, let’s try and get to bed. She’ll want us up early in the morning.” Merlin turned onto his side, putting his back to Arthur, flicking off the lamp.

Arthur wasn’t sure how to lay since there wasn’t much room left. He shifted around until Merlin said, “Arthur, stop moving.”

“I’m trying but it’s hard to get comfortable.”

Merlin reached behind him without looking and found Arthur’s arm, tugging him close until Arthur was right against him. “Now go to sleep.”

Arthur slowly slid his arm around Merlin’s waist and readjusted his head on the pillow until he was comfortable. He soon drifted off to sleep with Merlin in his arms.

 

* * *

 

December 25th

 

Arthur awoke the next morning to someone calling his name. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times before focusing on Merlin’s face that was not far from his face. “What?” he mumbled.

“It’s time to get up,” Merlin replied. He sounded more awake than Arthur.

Arthur was not ready for that. “Five more minutes,” he said as he closed his eyes. It was not a request. Arthur was not getting out of bed for another five minutes.

“But Arthur, it’s Christmas morning,” Merlin persisted.

Arthur opened his eyes again. “What’s the rush? Why can’t we lay here for another few minutes?”

“Because my mum is already up and is expecting us.”

“We’ll just pretend to be asleep and she’ll never know.” Arthur snuggled close to Merlin. “This is the first morning I’ve gotten to wake up with you in my arms and I want to enjoy it.”

“Fine,” Merlin said but a smile spread across his face. “I didn’t realize how sappy you were.”

“Shut up, Merlin.”

 


	6. Epilogue

December 26th 

 

Morgana narrowed her eyes at Arthur and Merlin as she looked from one to the other. “So, you are dating for real now.”

“Yes, we officially a couple now,” answered Arthur.

Merlin shifted her gaze to Merlin.

“He’s telling the truth, Morgana,” he said.

“I’m just making sure this time,” she replied as she looked away.

Gwen leaned forward, leaning her arms on her legs. “I still can’t believe you two lied to all of us,” she said. Her usual cheery and friendly expression was less cheery as she looked at her friends.

“I am really sorry, Gwen,” Merlin said. “But least we now have a fun story between the four of us.”

“That father and grandmother will never hear about,” Arthur added, looking directly at Morgana.

Morgana sighed. “While it is good blackmail on you, I won’t say a word to them.” Arthur relaxed a little. “But,” she continued, “I’m not letting you two off the hook that easily.”

“What do you have in mind?” Merlin asked.

“Morgana and I have decided you’ll help us with our wedding planning,” answered Gwen.

“I assumed we would help anyway. That doesn’t sound so bad,” Merlin said.

“Oh, trust us, it’ll be more than you expect.” Morgana gave them a devilish smile.

Arthur and Merlin groaned as they accepted their fate.

 

* * *

 

7 Months Later

 

Merlin entered his shared flat with Arthur, slamming the door and dropping his keys into the bowl next to the door.

Arthur turned around from the couch and looked at him with a concerned look. “Everything alright? I thought you were going to be home an hour ago?”

Merlin didn’t respond as he toed off his shoes and walked to the couch. He flopped down, laying his head in Arthur’s lap. “I never want to look at another wedding dress ever again,” he finally said, looking up at the blond.

“Oh don’t be so dramatic,” Arthur replied, ruffing up Merlin’s hair. “Why didn’t you text me you would be late?”

“My phone died because we were there so long and I didn’t realize it. I think she tried on nearly every dress in the shop and she still couldn’t decide on one.”

“What is she going to do then?” he asked as he continued to run his fingers through Merlin’s hair.

“There’s one more shop she has left she hasn’t been to you yet so she’s going there next week. And I have to accompany her.”

“Sorry you have to go again. Hopefully it’ll be a success and she’ll finally find a dress.”

“This next trip I won’t be going alone”

“Who’s going with you?”

Merlin smiled up at Arthur and said, “You of course.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so this fic is finally complete! I hope it was worth the wait. I would like to thank everyone who stuck through the long wait and left comments. They were encouragement to finish this. If I didn't know people were looking forward to the end, it might never have come.
> 
> For those interested, I do plan on writing a sequel to this for Morgana and Gwen's wedding! It'll have more of their POV in it but Arthur and Merlin will be there of course. I'm not sure when it will be up since I have other projects to work on first but it will be up sometime this year for sure. Follow me on here or [tumblr](buckypendragon.tumblr.com) to know when it's coming.


End file.
